Well-exploding device



June 16, 1925. 1.541.790

w. J, CHELEY ET AL WELL EXPLODING DEVI CE Filed Sept ll, 1924 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 `une 1 6. 1925.

W. J. CHELEY ET AL WELL EXPLODI NG DEVI CE Filed Sept 1924 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 d mome Led june 16, 1925.

miree s'raras PATENT` UFEICE.

' WILLIAM J CLiELEY, OF CASPER, WYOMING, AND WARREN F. BLEECKER, OF BDULDER,

COLORADO, ASSIGNORS TO ZERO HOUR TORPEDO COMPANY, OF CASPER, W YOMING.

WELL-EXPLODING DEVCE.

I Application filed September 11, 1924. Serial No. 737,178.

T o all whom 't may cancer-n:

Be it known that we, VVILLIAM J. CHELEY and WARREN F. BLEECKER, citizens of the United States, residing atCasper and Boulder, inthe counties of Natrona and Boulder and States of Wyoming and Colorado, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Well-Explodin Devices, of which the following is a specii'ication.

The present invention relates to a well Shooting appliance, and has for its object to `rovide a device of' this character which em odies novel features of Construction, whereby a charge of high explosves such as dynamite, glycerin or the like can be safely and effectively exploded in a well.-

In connection with oil, gas and water wells the expedient is sometimes resorted to of exploding a charge of high explosives in the well in an elort to revive or increase thefiow thereof. The setting and firing of a charge of high explosive in a deep well is ordinarily accompanied with a certain amount of danger and there have been serious accidents occasioned by the premature or'untimely explosion of the charge.

Among the objects of the present invention is to provide a well Shooting device which is a self-contained unit, so that it can be readily lowered into the well, and which provides for the proper timing and firin'g o'f the explosive charge with as little danger as possible.

The timing element is designed as a separate unit which can be properly tested out and adjusted before it is placed in position, and where a clock or watch is used means may be provided for preventing magnetic forces in the earth from interfering with the proper action of the watch.

While one particular embodiment of the invention will be shown and described for illustrative purposes, it will be 'understood that it is possible to make many modifications and changes in the details of construction without departing from the scope of the invention.

For a full understanding of the invention reference is to be had to the following doscription and accompanying drawings n which,

Figure 1 is a Vertical sectional View through a well Shooting device which is constructed in accordance with the invention,

showing the same as completely assembled and ready to be lowered into the well.

Figure 2 is a view showing the device as packed in sand within the container which is utilized for lowering the device into the well.

Figure 3 is a detail view'of the battery, watch and caps.

F igure 4 is a detail View of the timer containing shell, parts being broken away.

F igure 5 is a detail view of the battery and timer. I

Figure 6`is a plan View of the inner face of the watch crystal showing the manner of applying the contact thereto.

Figure 7 is an enlarged sectional view through a portion of the watch Crystal and adjacent parts of the watch, showing the contact element which is carried by the Crystal.

Figure 8 is a transverse sectional view on the line 8-8 of Figure 1, looking in the direction of the arrows.

Corresponding and like parts are referred to in the following description and indicated on all of the views of the drawings by like reference characters.

Referring to Figure 1 of the drawin s, the numeral 1 designates an outer metal ic shell which has an elongated tubular formation and is adapted to be closed at its upper end by means of a cap 2. A gasket 3, which nay bc of any suitable material such as load, is interposed between the cap and the top of the' outer shell 1, so as to form tight joint When the cap is placed in position. This outer shell l is preferably fornied of some material, such as iron, which is a ready conductor of magnetic lines of force, so that there will be no possibility of the meta-l parts of the watch or the tining mechanism which is used within the shell 1 being acted upon by any magnetic force in such a way as to prevent the timing mechanism from Operating in the desired manner. Cast iron will constitute a Very satisfactory metal from which the outer iron shell 1 may be constructed, for the reason that it is very frangible and will not interfere with the proper explosion of the dynamite or other explosive, and will at the same time provide a path for the lines of force of any magnetic field which night be encountered, so that the lines ot force will not go through the interior of the shell.

Fitting closely within the outer shell 1 is the explosive and timer containing shell 4, which may be. formedof any suitable materiai, such as card-board, which is suitably treatcd to rendor it water-proo-f. The shell 4 is of a proper size and shape as to COlIlplctely till the outer metallic shell 1 and, if desired, the shell 4 may be provided with a ca 5. y

Fiting within the upper end of the inner shell 4 is a tiiner containing casing G, the latter having a cross section corresponding to the interier of tne shell 4, so that it will have a 'snu fit therein. subdivided y a transverse partition 7 into an upper conpartment 8 in which the timing mechanism proper is located, and a lower compartment 9 which receives the caps 10. The lower compartment is open at the bottom thereof, so that the lower ends of the caps project beyond the casing.

A battery 11 fits within the npper compartment 8. This battery may he of the usual dry cell type, and an L-shaped bracket 12 has one end thereof soldered or otherwise Secured to the upper terminal of the battery. The other end of the bracket 12 is soldered or otherwise suitably secured to a suitable timing mechanism, such as the watch 13, said watch being provided with a glass Crystal 14 and an hour hand 15. The minute hand of the watch will be broken ofl" or removed. The watch or chronometer is thus rigidly connected to the battery so that it is held in a fixed relation thereto and the metallic parts of the watch are in eleetrical connection with the upper terminal .of the battery.

The hour hand of the chrononeter forms one of the Contacts of the time controlled electric switch, while the other contact is formed by a piece of spring wire 16, which projects through an opening in the corresponding crystal 14 into the path of the hour hand. The inner end of the spring wire- 16 is inclined in the direction of movementof the hour hand 15, so that the hour hand can pass under the contact wire after it has made proper contact therewith. The face of the watch may be insnlated, as indieated at 16", opposite the spring contact wire 16, to avoid possibility of a short circut through the watch. The outer end of the contact wire 16 is soldered, or otherwise secured to the end of an insulated lead wire 17, said wire being securely fastened to the front of the watch Crystal 14 by means of non-conducting material such as linen threads 18 which are inserted through i openings in the watch 'Crystal and wrapped around the wire. A lashing is thns provided for holding the lead wire in proper position on the face of the watch, so that The casing, 6 is.

there will be no danger of the wire/becoming accidentally displaced and permitting the eircuit to be premat'rely closed. The lead wire 17 extends downwardly on one side of the battery, and a groove 19 is provided on the interior of the casing 6 at one side of the battery receiving seat for the reception of the wire. A second wire 20 is-soldered or otherwise properly secured to the bottom of the battery 11, and these two wires 17 and 20 extend through suitable openings in the transverse partition 7 into the lower compartnent 9 of the casing 6. The lower ends of these two wires 17 and 20 are connected in parallel to the two caps 10. The two caps are thus connected in such a manner that if either one of the caps.

should fail the other cap will explode and the use of the two caps practically elimi nates the possibility of a falure of the device to operate properly due to a failure of the caps.

The watch or chronometer 13 can be properly tested out before the caps are applied, and the proper operation of the Contacts of the time controlled switch' can also he tested out by snbstituti a small elcctric light for the caps. After the chrononcter and switch have been tested ont and found to be Operating properly, the hour hand of the chrononieter can be set so that the switch will be closed within a n'edeterniicd time, said time ordinarily to be not less than one hour or more than eleven hours. hen the caps are then connected the timing and cxploding devicewill be ready as a unit for nse. After the device has been properly set the cover 21 should be applied to the top of the casing, and this cover should never be removed after it has once been put in place. The chronometer and wires are, all ettectively sealed within the casing, so that the device can be handled as a unit without an danger of the wires being pnlled 0nt o position in such a way as to destroy the adjustment or possibly close the circuit prematnrely with disastrons results.

The charge of high explosives 22 is placed in the bottom' of the inner shell 4, after which the timing and exploding unit. which has been set as previonsly described, is inserted in position in the top of the inner shell 4. The caps 10 project beyond the end of the casing 6, so that they will be brought into effective contact with the high explosive The inner shell E is then placed in position inthe outer shell 1, the inner shell' being first closed by the cap 5 and the onter shell being closed by the cap 2. The device must now be lowered into the well, and for this purpose a container 23, such as'that shown in Fignre 2, may be used. This container has an elongated formation so that it will pass through jchronometer may be set so brought into the bore of the well and the upper end of the container is provided wit-h a suitable Elace at the predetermined time. It will understood that the hour hand 15 of the that it will be engagement with the resilient contact wire 16 wthin a certain predetermined number of hours from the time of setting, and the charge will be exploded at that time. The contact of the hour hand 15 with the contact wire 16 will close the battery circuit through the caps 10. This will explode the caps in the usual manner and the ex losion of the caps acts to exlode the ynamite 22. One cap is sufcient toexplode the dynamite, although two caps are used to -guard against a possibility of failure on the part of one of the `caps.

The timer is-firml tery and the entire e ectrical device is completely housed within and protected by a casin so that it-is impossible to obtain acces thereto after it has been set. In handling the timing device after it has been set there is no possibility of destroying the wires or breaking the connections and the electrical device is not placed in operative positionwithin the inner casing until after it has been set and sealed so that there is nodanger' of moving the wires to prematurely close the circuit. The construction of 'the device is such that the charge of high explosive can be handled and discharged at the bottom of the well with a minimum amount of danger and if ordinary care is used there will be no pos- 'sibility of a premature or untimely explosion.

The timer'containing shell 4 may be formed of some suitable material such as cardboard, and 'this tubular cardboard shell can be used as a mailing tube for the easing 6 and timer elements mounted therein. The Easteboard tube 4 thus serves as a shell for o'lding the parts when they are assembled for use and also as a tube for carrying the timing parts if they are sent through the mails. The timing parts can be mailed from the manufacturer to the user in the tube 4, and in the event any defect should be discovered in the timing mechanism the latter can be remailed tothe manufacturer in the said tube. There is thus no extra expense involved in providi a mailing receptacle for use in sending t e timing device from the manufacturer to the consumcr or from the con sner to the manufacturer.

Having thus described our invention what anchored to the bat- 1. A well Shooting device including an iron shell, a removable cap forming a Water tight closure for the iron shell, an explosive receiving'shell fitted within the iron shell, and time controlled means for firing the explosive at a' predetermined time arranged within the explosive receiving shell, theiron shell providing a water tight housing for the explosive and timing means and also protecting the timing means from the action of a magnetic field.

2. A well Shooting device comprising an explosive receiving shell, an electrical timer unit including a time controlled electric switch, and a ca'p mounted upon and-carried by the timer unit whereby the timer and cap are handled and appled as a unit to the ex plosive receiving shell after the eX- plosive has been placed in the shell.

v 3. A well Shooting device conprising an explosive receivi'ng shell, a 'timer' casing fitting within the shell, an electric battery 'arranged within the timer casing, a time controlled switch mounted upon and carried by the battery, and a cap mounted upon and 'carried by the timer casing, said cap being operatively connected with the battery and the time switch and the battery, time switch and ,cap being adapted to be handled as a unit.

.4. A well Shooting device comprising an explosve recevng shell, a tmer casng ap- 'plied thereto and formed with two compartments, an electrical timer unit fitted in one of the compartments, a closure for the said conpartment, and a cap fitted in the -othercompartment and controlled by the timer unit, the cap and timer unit being adapted to be handled as.a unit.

5. A well Shooting device comprising a tubular shell adapted to be -used as a mailing tube, and a timer casing-fitted within the shell so that it can either be mailcd within the shell or supported in operative position thereby. V

i 6. A well shootin device comprising an explosive receiving s ell, a timer casing applied theretoand formed with a compart-` Inent, a battery removably fitted in the compartment, a chronometer connected to and carried by the battery, a time contro led switch actuated by tle chronometer, and an initial exploder in the circuit with the battery ru?. time controlled switch.

7. A well Shooting device comprising an explosive receiving shell, a timer casing applie'd thereto, a battery within the timer casing, a chronometer carried by one Leruinal of the battery and including a movable hand and crystal, a contact wire projecting through the crystal into the path of the movable hand, and an initial exploder arranged in the, battery circuit with the contact member.

r&

8. A well Shooting device including an explosive receiving shell, a timer casing, a battery within the timer casing, a chronometcr carried by one terminal of the battery and having a Crystal and a novable hand, a contact Wire projecting through the Crystal into ,the path of thc novable hand, a lead Wire connected to the contact wire and fastened to the Crystal, and an initial exploder arrangcd in the battcry circuit with the lead w e and contact Wire.

9. A Well Shooting device including an electrical timer unit comprising a'battery, a chronometer carried by one terminal of the bat-tery and having a novable hand and a crystal, a contact wire p'rojecting through 'the Crystal into the path of the novable hand, circuit Wires connecting the said contact wire to the other terminal of the battery, and an initial exploder interposed in the said circuit Wires.

l. A well Shooting device including an elect'ical timer unit which compriss a battery, a chrononeter carried by one terminal of the battery and having a movable hand and a perforated crystal, a contact wire projecting through the crystal into the path of formed with two compartments, a battery fitted removably within one compartnent, a chronometer Inounted upon and carried by one terminal of the battery, and having a Crystal and a movable hand, a. contact wire projecting through the Crystal into the path of the movable hand, lead WlI' GS eX-- tending from the other battery terminal and the contact Wire to the other conpartnent -of the casing, and an initia'l exploder arranged within the said other compartment and connected to the lead Wires.

'mounted upon the shell for firingt ter described, including an explosive ing shell, a self-contained electric time" plosive charge at a predetermined tim timer 'unit from the action of a magnetic'` 14.' A well Shooting device comprising an explosive receiving shell, a timer unit, and a cap mounted upon and car-ried by the timer unit, whereby the timer and cap are.

handled and applied as a unit to the eX- -plosive receiving ,shell after the explosive has been placed in the shell.

15. A well shooting device comprising an explosivereceiving shell, an electric timer unit, a cap mounted upon and carried by the timer unit whereby the timer and 'cap are handled and applied as a unit to the explosive receiving shell after the explosive has been placed in the shell, and an iron shell providing a water tight housing for the explosive receiving shell and also protecting the electrical timer unit from the action of' a magnetic field.

16. A Well Shooting devicebf the charac ter described including a nechanical tiner unit of a kind influenced by a Inagnetic field and adapted to-fire an explosive charge at a predetermined time, means for protecting the timer unit from the action of a nagnetic field, and an explosive charge adapted to be fired by the timer unit.

In testimony whereof We aflix our signai tures.

WILLIAM J. CHELL Y. WARREN F. BLEECKER.

ti ix .e nd

means enclosing the electric timer unit for, 

